The Failure of 20^th May 2018 in Ambazonia; A Retrospective on the Revolutionary Gains & Pains

The futile celebration of the charade and phony 2018 National Unity Day by La Republique du Cameroun (LRC) in Ambazonia, has come and gone. However, the revolutionary happenings of that day, with respect to the ongoing war of independence in the Federal Republic of Ambazonia, shall remain recorded in the archives and be cited over time, in the continuous historical journeys of both LRC and Ambazonia.

While May 20, 2018 shall be remembered in Ambazonia as the day Ambazonians completely shattered the bond of slavery under LRC; citizens of LRC shall remember it as probably the last May 20 celebrations they ever had before their captured stubborn “two cubes of sugar” break loose from captivity. The message behind the resistant boycott by Ambazonians all over the national territory was clear – your 56 years of enslavement are enough.

BaretaNews, the Peoples’ Platform, finds it necessary, to take a retrospective look at the revolutionary gains and pains of the 2018, May 20 travesty, and situate them within the context of the present state of the revolution and the way forward.

The turnout for the so-called celebrations in Ambazonia, was absolutely more catastrophic, as compared to that of the year 2017. From field reports across the 13 counties of Ambazonia, the boycott could be described without fear of contradiction, as 95 percent successful. Among the 5 percent turnout at the ceremonial grounds, it is evident that about 3 percent was registered through coercion and intimidation. Ambazonians, who’d been illegally abducted in their neighbourhoods during routine harassments within the week leading up to the fake celebrations, were kept in detention centers, and forced with T-shirts to participate in the aimless march pass that day, as a prerequisite for some of their released.

The events in the Southern Zone

In tha Fako County for instance, jokey celebrations were witnessed only in Tiko, Victoria and Buea. Victoria, which has literally become a colonially assimilated city, surprised all, as the turnout of the population was disastrous, with the parade lasting just a little above 15 minutes, as witnessed by a BaretaNews reporter on the scene, and corroborated by local radios within the city.

In the Ambazonian Federal Capital of Buea, the ceremony was compressed within an hour, as tension and uncertainty prevailed around the Independence Square. All major entrances into the ceremonial ground were blocked and heavily guarded by stern looking and AK 47 wielding colonial terrorists. All the major schools and youth groups that hitherto participated in the deceptive national Unity Day were conspicuously absent. While the isolated and countable few that marched pass the grand stand were schools and groups made up of citizens from across the Milner-Simon international border post.

As the parade was ongoing in the heart of the city, Ambazonian restoration forces gallantly took on the colonial terrorists in surrounding villages, neutralizing an unidentified number of them. A source within the Buea General hospital had exclaimed at the number of military corpses streaming into the hospital morgue since 9:00 AM. And of course, the terrorist army of LRC do not bring corpses of restoration boys nor innocent citizens caught in cross-fire to the morgue, apart from their neutralized colleagues.

In nearby Ekona, for instance, an aggressor colonial police officer, Moulong Azang Jean Jacques was deleted by the restoration boys and girls as he fired at a checkpoint mounted by the freedom fighters. His colleague was also arrested and taken into custody. Attempts to send reinforcement from Buea were futile, as the courageous Amba warriors greased the tarmac, making the smooth movement of vehicles impossible. The convoy of the colonial D.O for Muyuka, en-route to Buea for the fake ceremony was chased back to his base in Muyuka. As we write, the roadside town of Ekona is still a dead zone as the people have all fled to interior villages and neigbouring towns for fear of frustrated brutality from the baby-like colonial terrorist soldiers.

In Manyu County, apart from the very scanty and heavily militarized colonial gathering at the Mamfe grand stand, all other local Government Areas in the county witnessed zero-participation rate. For example, the colonial D.O for Tinto Local Government, could be seen in a viral footage, celebrating with five colonial terrorist soldiers at a completely deserted Tinto ceremonial ground.

Kupe Muanenguba County did not disappoint. According to Equinox tv, a LRC based private channel, restoration forces engaged the colonial terrorists in a battle at the ceremonial ground, as early as 8 AM, a battle that lasted for 4 hours. At the end of the day, it was only the terrorists and the colonial SDO who paraded and went home, while the population remained indoors and others disappeared to unknown destinations. The restoration fighters had earlier arrested the Mayor of Bangem and his Deputy on the eve of May 20, after they were caught coercing the people with t-shirts to participate in the banned celebrations.

Lebialem County on its part was and is still a no-go zone. Restoration boys and girls in that county, upped their game and arrested the Colonial Delegate for Transport and the Deputy SDO in their attempts to organize May 20 celebrations in the county. The whole event in Lebialem was a sham, as the colonial terrorists themselves did not even have the time to parade, for fear of an ambush by the freedom warriors. The Menji colonial Police station was razed down as stubborn colonial agents who attempted defying the May 20 ban, ran for safety and cover at the heavily guarded SDO’s residence.

Another scanty gathering of colonial agents and some colonial slaves took place in Kumba the chief town of Meme County, with heavy colonial military blockades in major road junctions, for fear of restoration fighters.

The situation was not very much different in the Northern zone of Ambazonia. Apart from Ndonga-Mantung County, where colonial agents and their slaves had about a 35 percent success in the main towns of Ndu and Nkambe, making a mockery of the revolution unperturbed, the boycott of the fake National Unity Day in every other county was 95 percent successful. From Boyo to Wum, from Kumbo to Santa, from Bafut to Bamenda and from Bali through Batibo to Widikum, the total boycott was clearly visible.

The events in the Northern Zone

In Bamenda town, colonial agents ferried their families and few colonial students from bilingual schools in military trucks to participate in the march pass at the Chief Ayamba Avenue otherwise known as the Commercial Avenue. All major road junctions were blocked and military drones used to survey the ceremonial ground from the air, for fear of restoration forces. The town was completely ghosted as the people remained indoors observing a ghost town which started five days earlier.

The freedom warriors had reportedly fired gun shots that got the colonialists in Bamenda panic-stricken, causing the march pass to last just for about 30 minutes. While in Santa a fierce clash between colonial terrorist soldiers and Amba warriors at Mile 10, led to a show of frustration by the terrorist soldiers at the popular mile 12 neighbourhoood. The march pass in Santa saw just the colonial agents and a CPDM militia group created by slave boy Fru Jonathan, for antirevolutionary activities.

In Bafut, BaretaNews is told that, a sudden appearance of restoration warriors around Nsanimunwi (around the Bafut Palace), got the entire community dead silent. After making a stopover at the tomb of the Queen of Bafut (Ndila’ah), where they prayed to the ancestors, the courageous fighters proceeded to the May 20 ceremonial ground at Nsem to ensure that no colonial celebration took place there.

Going to Boyo, it was a day of gun battles between colonial soldiers and Amba warriors. All citizens remained indoors, while others remained in nearby bushes. Colonial terrorists as usual, had gone about Belo Municipality in the previous day burning properties and houses belonging to innocent citizens.

In Kumbo, one could only see a handful of colonial agents littered at the grand stand with colonial terrorists parading the area with military trucks alongside a handful of hungry looking CPDM militants. In fact, the red dusty arena was more visible than human beings around the ceremonial arena.

In Batibo, restoration boys ambushed a truck full of terrorist soldiers around the Bali-Batibo bridge, as exchange of fire power led to the neutralization of colonial Police Commissioner simply identified by BaretaNews as Ateba. Fierce fighting around Batibo and Ngie sent citizens into their homes and nearby bushes, as no May 20 celebrations took place around that area. By the close of the day, BaretaNews received impeccable report of 30 fatalities on the part of the colonial terrorists.

A general assessment & Way foward

It was generally a successful day for the Ambazonian restoration fighters. With their traditional fighting tools, they gave the colonialists enough work for the day and a message to take home – nobody has the monopoly of the gun. In their usual frustration, the colonialists targeted and killed innocent citizens in Batibo and razed houses of citizens. Two restoration fighters are reported to have fallen in the battle in Batibo but alternative reports and photo analysts say the corpses displayed by the colonial gendarmes as Amba warriors, were innocent citizens, killed and the corpses ferried with a gendarmerie Hilux to the Batibo field and dressed up to look like restoration forces.

By successfully boycotting and burring the fake National Unity Day, Ambazonians have shown the world and the colonial regime of Paul Biya that Ambazonia has come of age and it is no longer going to be business as usual. The people, for the second time and decisively too, destroyed the fake celebration of a day that enslaved them. The boycott of the shameful event was total. The almost assimilated Victoria, for once rose up again and stood tall to be counted among revolutionary cities.

The manner in which the towns, cities and communities were ghosted from north to south, including the federal capital territory, should sent a clear message to those who care to listen that the Interim Government of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia, is in control of the People. Consequently, all the fireworks displayed by the colonial regime in Buea and Bamenda in the evening of that they were all in vain. In fact, they were a celebration of Ambazonian freedom from colonial enslavement of LRC.

For the few who flouted the ban on the fake celebrations, especially the colonial administrators and their slave boys and girls, the restoration forces shall visit them with the freedom message. The colonial agents and slaves in Ndonga-Mantung County in particular must take note. The several arrests made by restoration forces is a reminder to all colonial administrators that, they are no longer safe in Ambazonia. It is a reminder for them to pack their luggage and go home.

The Restoration Forces have shown the world that Ambazonia is ready for self-governance, as it were before. The professionalism exhibited by the Ambazonian warriors without training is telling.The Interim Government must ensure that these courageous boys and girls who have sacrificed their lives for the freedom of the 8 million Ambazonians are provided with the most needed resources. The people of Ambazonia must now believe even more that Buea, is very closer than they have ever imagine and show their support to these boys and the revolutionary leadership.

BaretaNews, has always posited that this revolution is in stages. The self defense mechanism began in Manyu, and today it is in Fako and in nearly all the counties. The Local Government Areas around Fako County are gradually falling, and so the CAPITAL. BUEA, MUST FALL and very soon too.

Ambazonians, must pay homage to all restoration forces who have died in battle. The least that can be done for them at the moment is to pray for the repose of their souls, write their names somewhere and respect them, by not brandishing photos of their corpses on the Social Media. They died for a JUST COURSE. Let them go in peace. They have played and ended their own role in the Ambazonian Restoration quest. History and those who will be lucky to remain alive and finally reach Buea shall ensure that all are honoured and remembered glaringly and accordingly. Remember, we might not reach Buea as friends, family or individuals, but WE WILL REACH BUEA AS A PEOPLE.

Going forward, instructions from the interim government on the next phase of the revolution must be taken seriously. Things will never be the same again. The revolution is revolutionizing, as the self-defense operations enter phase three of its strategies. Citizens must stay safe, be vigilant, be home by 6pm Ambazonia time and do everything humanly possible to ensure that the flames of the revolution continue to shine wherever they are until FREEDOM comes.

Citizens must do all in their power to avoid the troubles of colonial terrorist forces. BaretaNews is also by this, challenging the colonial regime and its terrorist forces to allow innocent Ambazonians alone. Face the restoration forces. Those are their enemies. The colonial terrorists must know that they do not have the monopoly of committing atrocities. Like Comrade Ayaba Cho Lucas said in Toronto, Canada, Restoration Forces shall not hesitate to take the battle into LRC city centers, if the attacks, burnings and looting in Ambazonian villages continue.

AMBAZONIA SHALL & MUST BE FREE

James Agbor

BaretaNews Political Analyst